114. Tricky Word Contrasts 3

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It is useful to analyse similar-looking English expressions in order to prevent or stop their confusion

THE PROBLEM OF TRICKY WORD CONTRASTS

Most users of English have encountered vocabulary items that are easily confused because they resemble each other in spelling and/or meaning. Some of these – for example compliment (= express admiration to…) versus complement (= match) – are particularly well-known because they are often explained in English language coursebooks. However, many others are not found there and can remain unexplained and sometimes not even recognised.

It is vocabulary pairs like this, especially ones that are likely to occur in professional writing, that are the focus of the present post, just as they are of various others with a similar title (see the “Posts on Specific Words” page for a complete list). Other Guinlist posts that deal with vocabulary confusions include 16. Ways of Distinguishing Similar Words,  44. Troublesome Prepositional Verbs,  94. Essay Instruction Words and 211. General Words for People.

For some grammar confusions, see 129. Differences between Necessity Verbs, 133. Confusions of Similar Structures and 217. Tricky Grammar Contrasts. For some pronunciation ones, see 144. Words that are Often Heard Wrongly.

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LIST OF CONTRASTS

1.  “Graphic” versus “Graph”

The word for a line linking points between two axes is a graph. The word a graphic has a more general meaning: any visually-presented information such as a graph, chart, diagram, table, picture or map (see 104. Naming Data Sources with “As”). Graphics can also, of course, mean visual features of a computer program, as when we say that a computer game has “realistic graphics”.

In addition, graphic is an adjective. It can mean “involving a graph” (an alternative to graphical), but is often used with the meaning of “explicit” or “shocking”, as in expressions like graphic violence and graphic detail. It can also mean “written”, making a contrast with words like pictorial that are not about writing. For more about -ic and -ical, see 172. Multi-Use Suffixes.

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2.  “Produce” (noun) versus “Products”

Produce is well-known as a verb but less familiar as an uncountable noun (pronounced with the stress on pro-). Like products, this noun names an outcome of production. The difference is in the kind of outcome: products are industrial while produce is agricultural. Thus, products would normally be used for items like computers, soap and books, while produce might refer to bananas, wheat and tulips.

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3.  “Function” versus “Functioning”

Again it is noun uses that are of interest here rather than verb ones. The function of something is its use or its reason for existence (see 119 BE before a “to” Verb, #2). The function of a refrigerator, for example, is to cool. Functioning, on the other hand, means “way of working”. Thus, the functioning of refrigerators involves the circulation of a volatile liquid through tubes passing inside and outside of a cooling compartment (see 240. Nouns that End with “-ing”).

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4.  “Efficient(ly)” versus “Effective(ly)”

These two adjectives/adverbs both say something good about a process or situation. Effective means that the process or situation achieves its purpose, regardless of how. Efficient, on the other hand, focuses more on how the purpose is achieved, indicating “with minimal cost”. The cost may be of money, time or effort. The usual error is to use efficient when effective would be more appropriate.

It is possible to be effective without being efficient and vice versa. For example, if we hear that students take notes effectively, we will know that they achieve good learning through their note-taking, even if the notes themselves are not very good. And if we hear that notes are efficient (concise, well-abbreviated), we should not conclude that they are helping the note-taker to learn successfully.

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5. AIM versus INTEND

Both of these verbs indicate a conscious plan for the future, in other words a purpose (see 60. Purpose Sentences with “for”). The purpose itself is usually expressed by means of a following to verb:

(a) Researchers aim/intend to prove the effectiveness of the drug.

The main difference between the verbs is the immediacy of the future target. If you intend to do something, you will normally expect to do it quite soon (see 195. Tricky Word Contrasts 7, #2); but if you aim to do something, it will be more distant, and you may plan to do something else first to make it possible. Thus, in (a) intend suggests that prove the effectiveness is a fairly imminent action by researchers, whereas aim suggests the proving will come much later, often after various intermediate actions.

A secondary difference is that INTEND suggests expectation of achieving the purpose, even determination, whereas AIM is more neutral about whether success will be achieved. Thus, intend in (a) implies a likelihood of the effectiveness of the drug being proved, whereas aim leaves this possibility more open.

Compare how these two differences work in the following:

(b) The police aim to reduce burglaries by 10%.

(c) The police intend to protest against reduced funding.

The target in (b) is much more long-term than that in (c), and is not guaranteed to the same extent.

A third difference between the verbs is that the active voice of INTEND always needs a conscious living subject whereas that of AIM does not. Thus, there is no problem with either verb in (a) because of the human subject researchers, but change it to research and only AIM is possible (the purpose then being understood to belong to the humans using the research). Inexperienced users of English need to take special care not to use INTEND in the active voice with non-human subjects.

Perhaps surprisingly, the passive voice of either verb seems to reduce the difference between them, making them equally usable for expressing a purpose. They need a non-living subject representing the means of achieving the purpose (e.g. research) and, once again, a verb after them indicating the targeted future. After BE INTENDED, this verb must again be in the to form, but after BE AIMED it needs at -ing (…is aimed at proving… – see 226. Words with Complicated Grammar 2, #3).

A verb that is very similar to BE AIMED/INTENDED is BE SUPPOSED. For the difference, see 81. Tricky Word Contrasts 2, #3.

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6.  “To Date” versus “Up To Date”

To date is an adverb meaning “up to the present time and possibly beyond”. It is a synonym of so far (but not of until now – see 48. Tricky Word Contrasts 1, #1); while up to date is an adjective meaning “of the latest possible kind”. Compare:

(d) To date, only a few countries have won football’s World Cup.

(e) Up-to-date information is available online.

The underlined words in (d) are an adverb because they show when the action of the verb (have won) occurs (see 120. Six Things to Know about Adverbs); whereas those in (e) are an adjective because they give information about the immediately-following noun information. Up to date is normally hyphenated as above when it precedes its noun, but not hyphenated when it is separated from it by BE or similar (see 223. Uses of Hyphens, #4).

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7.  “Unbelievable” versus “Hard to Believe”

Unbelievable well illustrates how words do not always mean what we expect (see 284. Words with a Surprising Meaning). It rarely means just “unable to be believed” – a meaning better expressed with something like hard to believe (see 152. Agreeing and Disagreeing in Formal Contexts).

The primary meaning of unbelievable is usually “very good”, “very bad” or “very surprising” (see 148. Some Important Prefix Types). It might accompany a word like outcome, hospitality, story, success or cruelty. An unbelievable story is thus not necessarily an untrue one but a very good or surprising one.

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8.  “By Day” versus “By the Day”

By day helps to name something that regularly happens during daylight hours as opposed to during the night. It is distinguished from during the day by the idea of regular occurrence, and from daily by the contrast with at night. A typical use might be:

(f) By day cats tend to sleep; by night they will hunt.

By the day, on the other hand, indicates a length of working time (one day) after which people are paid a wage. We might say, for example, that casual workers are paid by the day rather than by the week. Either the verb PAY or the noun wage is very likely to be used at the same time. For further idiomatic contrasts involving the, see 235. Special Uses of “the”, #8.

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9.  “Satisfying” versus “Satisfactory”

Satisfying has both verb and adjective uses (see 245. Adjectives with a Participle Ending), but it is the adjective one that is of interest here. It has a fairly expected meaning: “causing contentment through meeting an internal need”. The need may be a physical one like hunger, or mental like desire to see a particular football team win a match. The opposite of the latter is frustrating.

Since contentment is a desirable feeling, satisfying tends to be a positive word – it has what is technically called a “positive connotation” (see 16. Ways of Distinguishing Similar Words, #2).

Satisfactory, by contrast, has a more negative suggestion. Although there is a positive element in its meaning of “meeting a need” (see 189. Expressing Sufficiency), the negativity comes from an association with the lower or even minimum end of what is acceptable, rather like passable. This link is often reflected in academic grade interpretations, where satisfactory tends to mean a minimum pass, contrasting with higher levels dubbed average, good and excellent. The negative suggestion can be reduced, however, by placing entirely in front.

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10.  “Criticise”, “Critic”, “Criticism”, “Critique”

CRITICISE, a verb of Greek origin, strictly means “evaluate by considering strengths and weaknesses”, but is often used today to mean “speak negatively about”. The first use requires wide-ranging analysis, but the second can be just a single statement. Critics are people who criticise in either of these two ways, and criticisms are what they say. Speakers of French and Spanish (and probably some other languages) sometimes confuse critic with criticism, probably because they use a single word spelt like critic for both meanings.

Critique is the French noun with these two meanings, one of many borrowings by English from that language (see 135. French Influences on English Vocabulary, #7). In English, it can be a verb (CRITIQUE) as well as a noun. It always keeps the French pronunciation, with the second “i” stressed and pronounced /i:/ instead of /ɪ/. To speakers of some languages, this can sound the same as critic, causing confusion.

CRITIQUE and critique have the evaluation meaning possible with CRITICISE and criticism, but not the more negative use – an advantage when misunderstandings need to be avoided (see 94. Essay Instruction Words). Unfortunately, though, modern users are increasingly using even CRITIQUE / critique with the negative meaning in order to avoid the perceived impoliteness of CRITICISE / criticism. Grammatically, CRITIQUE has the same requirements as CRITICISE (see 279. Grammatical Variability of Citation Verbs).

113. Verbs that Cannot Be Passive

Some verbs have no passive form, but the functions of the passive can be achieved by using a different verb

VARIATION IN THE PROPERTIES OF ENGLISH VERBS

English passive verbs typically comprise some form of BE and a “past” participle. Examples (with the BE part underlined) are is understood, was helped, were being copied, can be taken and should have been known. Sometimes BE is replaced by BECOME or informal GET, e.g. got hit, or even dropped altogether (see 192. When BE can be Omitted). Verbs that are not passive are usually called “active”.

Verbs vary in the choices they offer concerning the passive form. One type (e.g. SAY) is compulsorily passive with a particular type of subject noun (messages instead of speakers). Another type (e.g. INCREASE) can be active with any type of subject, but can also sometimes be passive (see 4. Verbs that Don’t Have to be Passive); and a third type (e.g. APPEAR) cannot ever be passive and so must always be in the active form.

It is verbs of this third type that the present post is about. Lists are provided of some of the more common ones in professional writing, and consideration is given to how a writer might achieve the same sorts of things with them that are achieved with other verbs by making them passive. For information about grammar mistakes that never-passive verbs can cause, see 142. Grammar Errors with Passive Verbs.

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FEATURES OF NEVER-PASSIVE VERBS

Never-passive verbs cannot reliably be identified from their meaning – the same meaning is sometimes found in two synonymous verbs, one able to be passive, the other not, such as INCREASE / RISE, CONTINUE / LAST and WORSEN / DETERIORATE. However, meanings are not a completely useless guide, and some observations about it are presented in 21. Active Verbs with Non-Active Meanings.

An alternative indication that a verb cannot be passive is inability to have an object when in the active form. An object is a noun or equivalent that usually follows an active verb without a preposition in between and neither represents nor describes the verb’s subject. Like the subjects of passive verbs, objects usually receive or suffer the action or state expressed by the verb (for a fuller definition, see 8. Object-Dropping Errors).

Verbs that must sometimes be passive, like SAY, need an object when active (though some, like EAT, leave it unmentioned but “understood”, and are hence what I call object-dropping); verbs that allow a choice about the passive, like INCREASE, also allow a choice about having an object when active; while never-passive verbs like APPEAR cannot usually have an object (though there are exceptions – see below).

Never-passive verbs are of three main types. One requires either no following noun expression at all or only ones with a preposition in front. Consider this:

(a) Water appeared.

No noun could be added directly after appeared in this grammatically complete sentence, but one would be possible in a preposition phrase like …in June or …under the tank.

Object-dropping verbs like EAT, and optionally-passive ones like INCREASE, which are both able to make two-word sentences like (a), are not similarly unable to have a directly-following noun: they can both be made to have one. However, there are a few verbs with the same limitations as APPEAR in this respect that do sometimes have a passive form. Some, such as ARRIVE, GO and FALL, do so poetically to express a semi-static outcome (see 207. Exotic Grammar Structures 4, #1). Others, e.g. COLLAPSE, DEPART and ESCAPE, can become adjectives with -ed (see 245. Adjectives with a Participle Ending, #2).

The second main type of never-passive verb does allow a noun expression directly after it – indeed it must normally have either that or an adjective expression (or even an adverb) – but such expressions lack the characteristics of an object, referring instead to the same idea as the subject, or describing it. The words needed after verbs like this are called “complements” rather than objects. An example is:

(b) Water was a problem.

Here, was illustrates the most common complement-taking verb, BE, which of course has no passive form. Other examples are BECOME and SEEM. For more, see 220. Features of Complements.

Thirdly never-passive verbs include a few that actually do need or allow an object. One group is verbs whose object is a -self word (oneself, themselves etc.), whether or not this is the only possibility (as with BEHAVE), or an alternative to an ordinary object (as with ENJOY, HELP and IMPROVE). For numerous examples of both types, see 268. Verbs with a “-self” Object.

The other group has objects naming a feature of the subject, especially a physical, often numerical, property (see 163. Ways of Naming Properties), e.g.:

(c) The substance weighed 24g.

Similar verbs include AVERAGE, CONSIST OF, COST, COVER (+ area), EQUAL (+ quantity), EXTEND (+ distance), FIT, HAVE (= “possess”), LACK, LAST, MEAN (= “correspond to”), MEASURE, OCCUPY (+ volume), RESEMBLE, STRETCH (= “be situated”) and SUIT. Note, though, that COMPRISE and HOLD (+ capacity) can be passive.

Finally, the verbs BENEFIT, PROFIT, FACE (= be opposite) and MARRY (= “take as a spouse”) are of interest. All can reverse their subject and object but still stay active (see  21. Active Verbs with Non-Active Meanings). The first two just add from; thus, Exercise benefits / profits everyone can become Everyone benefits / profits from exercise.

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NEVER-PASSIVE VERBS IN PROFESSIONAL WRITING

The above three types of never-passive verb are all quite common in professional writing. Of those needing an object, verbs like WEIGH have an obvious value, while -self verbs can be surprisingly suitable too (see the relevant post). Typical complement-requiring verbs are APPEAR (= “seem”), BE, BECOME, COMPRISE, CONSIST OF, FEEL, GO, GROW, LOOK (= “seem”), MAKE, NUMBER (+ number), REMAIN, SEEM, SMELL, SOUND, STAY, TASTE, TURN and TURN INTO. The underlined verbs tend to prefer adjective complements to noun ones.

Of verbs allowing no following noun, like APPEAR in (a), some are more common than others in professional writing. One rare group expresses bodily actions, e.g. BREATHE, DANCE, DIE, JUMP, LAUGH, LIVE, SMILE, SNEEZE and TALK. Also rare are verbs of a “phrasal” kind, like GET BY (= “cope”), GIVE UP (= “despair), GO AHEAD (= “proceed”) and TURN UP (= “attend”). They are often rejected because they are stylistically rather informal (see 108. Formal & Informal Words and 139. Phrasal Verbs).

Verbs like APPEAR that are subjectively common in formal writing include the following (a few also allow an object, but with a different meaning). The highlighted ones link to further information about them.

ABOUND, ACT (= behave), APPEAR (= become visible), APPLY (= be relevant), ARISE, ARRIVE, BEHAVE, BELONG, COINCIDE, COME, COMPLAIN, COMPLY, DECLINE (= decrease), DETERIORATE, DIFFER, DIP (= decrease slightly, DISAPPEAR, DO (=manage or suffice), EMANATE, EMERGE, EXCEL, EXIST, FAIL (= not do), FALL, FALTER, FARE, FLOW, FLUCTUATE, FUNCTION, GO, GLEAM, GLISTEN, GLOW, GREY, HAPPEN, INTERACT, INTERSECT, INTRUDE, LAST, LEGISLATE, LIE, LIVE, LOOM, MANAGE (= be successful), MATTER, OBJECT, OCCUR, PERSIST, PREVAIL, PROCEED, PROTRUDE, REACT, RECEDE, RECUR, REGRESS, RELENT, REMAIN, REPLY, RESULT, RISE, RUN (= go), STAY, STRIVE, STRUGGLE, SUCCEED (= be successful), SUCCUMB, SUFFICE, SURGE, TAKE PLACE, THINK (= ponder), THRIVE, VACILLATE, VANISH, VEER, WAIT, WAVER, WORK.

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WAYS TO ACHIEVE PASSIVE VOICE EFFECTS WITH NON-PASSIVE VERBS

Contrary to the advice of many writing manuals, the English passive has some definite uses that should not be underestimated. It can facilitate particular word orders (see 156. Mentioning What the Reader Knows Already), and it allows nouns and noun equivalents to be left unmentioned without completely “hiding” them (see 27. How to Avoid Passive Verbs and 46. How to Avoid “I”, “We” and “You”).

The wording of this latter use is not quite what most English coursebooks say. It highlights the fact that “hiding” can be achieved by other means than just the passive, and it suggests that the special value of hiding with the passive is to signal that something is hidden. Compare these:

(d) After much discussion, a solution emerged.

(e) After much discussion, a solution was found.

Both sentences equally well “hide” the source of a solution (the people doing the discussing). However, the passive was found additionally ensures that the reader appreciates the existence (and hard work) of such a source. The active emerged does not do this – the reader might understand that the solution just appeared by itself without any external cause. For further discussion of passive verb meaning, see the technical Guinlist article Active-Passive Paraphrases in English and what they Mean for Teaching.intransitivity types

The positioning and “hiding” uses of the passive can still be achieved when the verb that first comes to mind cannot be made passive. The most common solution is to find a completely different verb.

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1. Replacement Verbs for Changing Noun Positions

When noun positions are changed by means of a new verb, the passive voice is not inevitable. Consider the active verb substitute below that overcomes the inability of HAVE to be made passive:

(f) Drug abuse has many causes.

(g) There are many causes of drug abuse.

Here, the alternative verb is BE combined with of (see 161. Special Uses of “There” Sentences, #7).

In the following example, however, where SUCCEED is the verb that cannot be passive, changed noun positions are achieved by the passive form of a new verb:

(h) The new method succeeded.

(i) Success was achieved by the new method.

Note how the active verb succeeded here has become the related noun success. For more on this sort of paraphrase, see 39. “Decide” or “Make a Decision”? and 173. “Do Research” or “Make Research”?. In this particular case, a replacement verb in the active voice is also possible (Success came with … – see 27. How to Avoid Passive Verbs).

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2. Replacement Verbs for Hiding Nouns

In many cases, a never-passive verb will already be “hiding” a source or cause of what it represents. Therefore, the only reason that can exist for finding a substitute is not so much to hide anything as to emphasise that hiding is being done. This means only passive verb substitutes can be used. When they are preferred, the positions of the mentioned nouns will remain the same.

Here are likely passive-verb alternatives to some of the other never-passive verbs listed above. In some cases the passives equate to one particular meaning of the never-passive verb rather than others.

APPEAR: BE FORMED
ARRIVE/COME: BE BROUGHT
BECOME/TURN: BE MADE
DETERIORATE: BE MADE WORSE
DISAPPEAR/VANISH: BE REMOVED/BECOME HIDDEN
EXIST: CAN BE SEEN/NAMED/LISTED
FAIL: NOT BE ACHIEVED
FALL: BE REDUCED
FLOW: BE CHANNELLED
FUNCTION: BE OPERATED
GO: BE TAKEN/BE SENT/BE CHANNELLED
HAPPEN: BE BROUGHT ABOUT
LAST: BE MAINTAINED
LIE: BE LAID (see 97. Verb Form Confusions)
OCCUR: BE BOUGHT ABOUT
PROCEED: BE LED FORWARD
PROTRUDE: BE EXTENDED
RISE: BE RAISED (see 97. Verb Form Confusions)
RUN: BE DIRECTED
SEEM/APPEAR: BE PERCEIVED
RECUR: BE REPEATED
REMAIN/STAY: BE KEPT
RESULT: BE CAUSED/BE CREATED
TRAVEL: BE TRANSPORTED
WORK: BE EMPLOYED

Note that if finding a different verb like one of the above proves difficult, the alternative strategy of looking for a related noun is again possible. Consider this example from the post 46. How to Avoid “I”, “We” and “You”:

(j) I proceeded later.

The relevant noun here is procedure. To avoid I a suitable passive verb might be was commenced.

Finally, it is worth remembering that the passive is quite often a worse choice than an intransitive verb: there must be a special reason for using it. Critics of the passive are not wrong in saying that the active is more common.